Page 56 of Ignite
She’s flying nearby, likely with the rest of my fleet’s beasts.
“I can still feel her,” I whisper. “Even without the bond.”
Willow turns to me, and I finally rip my gaze away from Ryan and the squirming male.
“Your wyvern chose you for a reason,” Willow says slowly. “What you feel with her now is the bond manifesting quietly, a fraction of what you’ll feel once you fully make that connection.”
My brows pull together. I look up at the dark night sky, blurs of shadows passing over us where the wyverns soar.
“How do I do that?” If I’m going to Crea—a place a massive wyvern won’t be able to sneak through—I might need that bond. I haven’t been apart from her for long, and certainly not a kingdom away. What if I can’t feel her from such a distance?
Willow pats me on the shoulder and steers me toward where my friends are gathered. “When the time is right, you’ll know.”
She walks ahead of me, joining the circle where Aster is talking. I join them, settling beside Calix. I catch sight of a familiar tall female with cropped auburn hair. Brielle’s gaze finds mine, and she gives me a small smile, her color less gray and her eyes a little brighter.
A roaring laugh comes from behind our group as two males race to chug cups of ale, others gathering to cheer them on.
I lean over to Calix and whisper, “What’s this all about?”
We discussed splitting up—me going to Crea with Adrian and Leda flying with us to stay with Zeph once we made it across safely. The rest of my fleet would wait for her here, then head out to find Iris and Cyprian’s convoys.
These fae…they look like they’re preparing for battle.
“A bonding ceremony,” Aster cuts in, his voice snapping my attention over to him. “Bonds tend to increase the closer war gets—like there’s something in the air that causes a flurry of Riders to feel the pull.”
Ceremonyisn’t the way I would describe this. It’s more of…a preparation for war.
Asterhesitates, but moves on quickly. “Lunaria and Leda, these are for you two,” he says, holding out thick cloth for each of us.
We step forward, and I take it from him with a nod. When I unravel the fabric, I see that it’s a cloak—the same kind that the majority of the villagers have on. I swing it around my shoulders, tying it at the base of my throat.
It’s light on my back, but immediately blocks the chill of the night air.
“You’ll need it for the flight,” he explains. “Keeps the wind blocked and your core warm.” He scoots a sack toward us with his boot. “Supplies to get you and the human through two weeks of travel—though let’s hope Leda is back long before that.”
My neck prickles and nerves tingle up my spine as Leda bends down to pick up our provisions. I focus on the plan again, repeating it to myself like a prayer.
“Once Leda is back, Zephyr will stay here, awaiting your call once you return.” Aster’s gaze is on me. There’s no denying his past as a warrior. His words are short—clinical. His movements are relaxed but refined. “Brielle should be ready to leave by then, and the rest of your group will set off.”
I clench my teeth together at this part of the plan. We asked—severaltimes—for their help. But they shut down our requests before we could even finish a sentence.
We won’t be getting any more help from them. Though housing us and our wyverns, providing food, and telling us about Nightfall is more than we could ask for. Still, they’re warriors—Riders—yet they made it clear they won’t be leaving Kauri any time soon.
“There’s one last thing you need.” Aster’s voice dips low, his hand reaching into his pocket. “This will be more useful to you on your journey now that you’re going to Crea.”
He holds his hand up, the firelight catching on a stark whiteobject. It’s flat with jagged edges, small enough to fit in my palm.
“What is it?” Leda asks slowly.
Aster’s brows flatten. “It’s how we’ve been tracking Nightfall.” His words suck the air out of my lungs. “We found it in the cave with the drawings, stuck to the blade of the dagger’s image.”
The longer I look at the white object trapped between his fingers, the more I feel a tug on my chest, pulling me toward it.
“We think it’s a shard of the blade itself,” he whispers—at least Ithinkhe whispers it, because the sound barely reaches my ears.
The same buzzing I felt back at the cave returns, so loud that all the noises around me fade away. In the corner of my eye, I see Aster’s curious gaze on me, but I ignore him.
I can feel the object calling to me in the same way the images on the cave wall did.
